3DS price cut 40% in Japan, now $169.99 in the U.S.

This site may earn affiliate commissions from the links on this page. Terms of use.

Does anyone else think the 3DS has been on a sabbatical since it launched? I still only own one game for the system and am waiting for some of the big titles (Mario, Mario Kart, Star Fox) to appear. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time may have boosted sales of the system slightly, but so far it’s not an essential purchase with only a few titles worth picking up.

Nintendo has seemingly realized this as they have just announced a 40% price drop for the handheld in Japan. The usual selling price of 25,000 Yen will be dropped to 15,000 Yen on August 11. That’s a price drop in Japan only for the moment, but Nintendo has said it will drop the price in the West before the end of September.

If the same 40% drop applies in the U.S., then the current $249.99 price tag will become $149.99 making the 3DS a lot more pocket-friendly and desirable for parents buying Christmas presents for their kids.

There’s no guarantee we will see the same 40% drop over here, but such a significant drop would still leave a nice gap to the DSi which sells for around $90. However, the DSi XL would also need to drop in price because it currently sells for $169.99. Nintendo wouldn’t want its last generation machine to be more expensive than its latest device, so it may be worth keeping an eye on the XL price in the coming months too. It could be the XL drops to $149.99 and the 3DS to $169.99.

Nintendo’s reason for such a big price drop is wanting to speed up adoption. To us that reads as the 3DS just isn’t selling in the numbers Nintendo wants, and as most of the profit comes from game sales it needs to get more 3DS units into gamer’s hands as quickly as possible.

UPDATE: Shortly after announcing the 40% price cut in Japan Nintendo of America has confirmed that the handheld will drop to $169.99 in the U.S. on August 12. If you were planning on buying a 3DS in the next few days we definitely suggest waiting a few weeks and saving yourself $80. Early adopters (those purchasing a 3DS before August 12) will be entitled to 20 free download games from the NES and Game Boy Advance back catalogue.